Posted on 02/06/2011 12:44:47 PM PST by Signalman
An Israeli Cabinet minister says Israel should speed up development of its own natural gas fields in the wake of a pipeline explosion in Egypt that led to a temporary interruption of supplies to Israel and Jordan.
Egyptian state media and local government officials said they suspected sabotage in Saturday's pipeline explosion at a gas terminal in Egypt's northern Sinai Peninsula. Gas flow was temporarily shut down.
The incident has Israel worried. Egypt supplies about 40 percent of Israel's natural gas, most of it used in power stations. The gas deal is a cornerstone of peaceful relations, but Israel fears Egyptian instability in the wake of massive anti-government protests could render the agreement worthless.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the issue at the weekly Cabinet meeting.
He said Israel was prepared for such scenarios, but with shockwaves jolting the region, Israel must seek alternative sources of energy.
Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau is seeking government loans and tax breaks to speed up development of a huge natural gas field discovered off Israel's Mediterranean coast a few months ago. He said that, in the wake of events in Egypt, Israel must become energy independent.
"We always hope for the good, in terms of the peace agreement that we have and with the gas commercial contract that we have, but we always have to prepare ourselves for the bad case," said Landau.
Uncertainty over the gas pipeline points to a broader concern: Israel fears that if a hostile government comes to power in Egypt, it might cancel the 32-year-old peace treaty with Israel.
Good for Israel. The quality of thier leadership shows.
When it comes to natural gas for America, the best Obama comes up with is sticking his head up his personal source of gas ...
Read a report yesterday that said 80% of the gas from Egypt went to Jordan and 20% went to Israel (the 20% going to Israel is 40% of Israel’s natural gas). The Jordanians have only one big power plant, and they have temporarily converted it to diesel. They can run off diesel for 3 weeks. The pipeline is supposed to be repaired in 1 week, and the Egyptians have added 800 troops at the border near the pipeline to prevent further sabotage of the pipeline and minimize Hamas activities.
If the Jordanians do not get more diesel, and the pipeline remains down for more than 3 weeks, the country would be even more destablilzed by current events than at present.
Jordans energy is completely dependent on Egypt. The MB would have tremendous leverage over Jordan in regard to its friendly relationship with Israel if it comes to power in Egypt.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.